Economic Analysis of Three Soil-Surface Practices for Production of Fresh Market Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.)

• Published in: Journal of crop improvement Vol. 27; no. 1; pp. 113 - 123
• Main Authors: Mitchell, Jeffrey P, Summers, Charles G, Newton, Albert S, Stapleton, James J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Philadelphia Taylor & Francis Group 2013; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Agricultural production; biomass; costs and returns; cover crop; cover crops; crop production; Crops; fresh market; insect pest damage; Lycopersicon esculentum; mulches; mulching; no-tillage; plastics; silver; Solanum; Solanum lycopersicum; tomatoes; vegetable crops; California; USA, California
• ISSN: 1542-7536; 1542-7528; 1542-7536
• DOI: 10.1080/15427528.2012.733797

Plastic and cover crop mulches are widely used in a number of vegetable crop production areas, but they currently are not commonly used in California. Evaluations of the effects of silver UV reflective plastic (RP) and cool-season cover crop (CC) mulches relative to the standard, bare-ground production system (ST) on growth, yield, and costs and returns of tomatoes were conducted in California. Biomass increased earlier over the RP mulch and was nearly twice that of both the ST and CC mulch at harvest. Yields were higher for RP (62,022 kg ha⁻¹) and lower in the ST (37,467 kg ha⁻¹) and CC mulch (25,005 kg ha⁻¹) systems in 1999, and also highest in the RP in 2000. Costs in both the RP and CC mulch systems were higher than in ST system in both years and, based on returns on investment, were warranted in the RP system in both years, but only in 1999 in the CC system compared to the ST system. RP mulches may thus be a viable alternative for fresh market tomato production in California. CC mulches may be a useful alternative if productivity can be maintained using sustained no-tillage techniques.